By Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)
The only reason to see Disney’s Maleficent is for Angelina Jolie. She has the fire to play the faerie queen in all her glory. There’s a regal quality in her performance, and a spark of remorse for what she did: to curse Sleeping Beauty. But in what transpires, the character she plays demonstrates what faerie-kind can be like when forced to deal with humanity. They are nothing like the types created by William Shakespeare, although a few of them do come close.
Maleficent’s role model may well be Morgan Le Fay from the time of King Arthur. Annoy her, and she will send the Green Giant after you! But in this film, clip her wings, and you will invoke her wrath until the end times come. Maleficent is a vision of beauty, a Queen for all Faerie-kind that lives in her realm, and her freedom and mood is tied into the wings that she wears. They can be as soft as down and as majestic as an eagle’s. Most fae-folk have wings like that of a butterfly or an insect; they symbolize more than just freedom. They reflect the essence of an individual’s soul. When they are fair, an angel’s essence can be as gentle as the wind. When they are black and folded like that of a bat, thoughts about what Dracula is comes to mind.
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